Caixa Enginyers shoots up its profit. The cooperative entity achieved record earnings of 24 million euros in 2024, an increase of 22% compared to its previous fiscal year. The results are the first with Juanjo Llopis at the helm of the bank as general director, who has described them as "historic results." Llopis has held the position since January 1, after the retirement of Joan Cavallé, who had been at the head of the bank for nineteen years.
Record results for the entity, with 58 years of history, which Llopis has attributed to the rise in commissions for investment services, with 42.3 million, 17% more than in 2023, and to the boost in the interest margin ---the difference between the price they charge for credits and loans and the interest paid on deposits--- which increased by 14.86%, to 76.2 million. Even so, credit investment fell by 1.7% due to the increase in amortizations, one of the few figures in which the cooperative bank has noted a decrease, but which they trust will rise again this year.
The cooperative entity has also achieved records in the number of members, which has exceeded 216,000. On average, these members have an average of 6.1 financial products with the bank, a figure that also represents the highest in the entity's history. Thus, the bank has gained 3,000 new members, representing an increase of 1.4% compared to its previous fiscal year. The business volume of the members also rose by 5.4% during 2024, reaching almost 8.6 billion euros.
Looking ahead to this year, Caixa Enginyers has more than doubled its expectations and aims to add up to 7,500 new members, despite the "volatile environment" expected for this year according to Llopis. However, this figure is still far from the 260,000 members the entity aimed to achieve by 2026. Llopis has argued this improvement in expectations, on the one hand, by the satisfaction of its current members, another data point where the entity has also achieved its historical maximum, with an average score of 8.46 points, members who could recommend the entity and bring in new people.
On the other hand, the general director has also considered that one of their main "growth levers" this year will be the mobile banking project they have started to bring financial services closer to those Catalan municipalities that do not have bank branches or ATMs. Currently, the cooperative entity covers more than 300 municipalities and 237,000 inhabitants, after winning the Generalitat's tender to provide this service together with CaixaBank. A new initiative that Llopis has defined as "the big project" of 2024, through which about 150 members have already been acquired, and which they expect to play a key role also for this year.
"My will as director is for the entire entity to focus on increasing the level of engagement of our members," Juanjo Llopis remarked.Llopis also celebrated that, unlike other banks,the cooperative entity has remained stable in terms of its number of offices, with a total of 33 ---10 of which are concentrated in the city of Barcelona--- where more than 560 employees work.During 2024, furthermore, the number of these spaces shared with other entities has been reduced, as only two remain, one in Barcelona and the other in Lleida.
The return on equity (ROE) also rose to 9.4%, 1.2 points more than in 2023, a figure that consolidates the upward trend of the entity's last financial years. On the other hand, the group's efficiency ratio stood at 65.5%, six points less than in 2023, a decrease that is understood as positive since it indicates an improvement in the relationship between income and expenses.
With all these results on the table, the group will propose to the general assembly a remuneration of 5% on capital contributions by partners, a percentage that represents an increase of 0.75 percentage points compared to the previous year. "My will as director is for the entire entity to focus on expanding the level of engagement and attention to our partners," remarked Juanjo Llopis, who has been working for the group for eight years and now assumes its leadership.
Organic growth
Asked about the possible impacts of BBVA's takeover bid on Banco Sabadell and a possible increase in partners for Caixa Enginyers derived from this operation, the group's general president, Félix Masjuan, stressed that they have "no appetite for inorganic growth." Llopis added that clients who come to cooperative banking do so because of its personal and proximity banking model, and stressed that the entity "is not especially attentive" to this operation, but that if new possibilities arise from it, they will be analyzed when appropriate.
One of the moments of great growth for the entity came in 2017 after the cooperative bank's decision not to leave Catalonia, while Banco Sabadell or CaixaBank moved their registered offices after 1-O. Llopis also showed caution about whether the return of Sabadell could cause some partners to leave Caixa Enginyers now and defended the attractiveness of the cooperative model offered by the entity.
The new general director has also remarked that the cooperative entity is focused on following its strategic plan Transforma 2026, centered on pillars such as talent, efficiency, and digitalization. In addition to attracting up to 7,500 new members, they also propose to exceed 9,500 million euros in business volume from these members, almost 1,000 million more than this year, as well as maintaining their solvency.
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